Canon 10x30 IS stabilised binocular sticky covers (4 Viewers)

[richard866945]

Had a couple of the 10x30 IS pass through the workshop recently where the outer covering has gone horribly sticky. The black came off on hands and clothes. Talcum powder did not help so I used the stuff that removes the sticky glue left behind when you peel off a label. It did not damage the body and finished up with a nice shiny body. I then cut various shapes from a sheet of thin leatherette and covered the important parts where your hands / fingers go on the body and around the eyepieces. Not technical although a little time consuming and it made the binoculars useable again.

 

[jeffhosier]

That sounds great. Have you got any pictures of the finished item?

Cheers


Jeff

 

[[email protected]]

That is a well-known problem with the Canon 10x30 IS binoculars. There are many reviews On Amazon.com documenting the problem. Here is one.


"1.0 out of 5 stars. Another pair with gooey rubber.
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2016
Style: 013803240610
Same problem as reported by others. Optics are great but the rubber coating is turning to sticky goo. Called Canon to ask about the repair and the tech support person on the phone claimed he had never heard of this problem before. Considering the number of reports of this I've found on the internet I think he was being less than truthful.After reading what others were quoted by Canon to fix the problem I guess I'll figure out how to live with it. Not very happy with the quality of a pair of binoculars that cost almost $600.
UPDATE: The coating got so bad it was coming off on our hands and clothes so had to do something or throw them away. We used acetone and rags to clean the worst spots and, with a good bit of trouble, removed the coating completely. They even look better now. Under the rubber coating is hard, black, shiny material that forms the body"

 

[mdb2]

That is a well-known problem with the Canon 10x30 IS binoculars. There are many reviews On Amazon.com documenting the problem. Here is one.


"1.0 out of 5 stars. Another pair with gooey rubber.
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2016
Style: 013803240610
Same problem as reported by others. Optics are great but the rubber coating is turning to sticky goo. Called Canon to ask about the repair and the tech support person on the phone claimed he had never heard of this problem before. Considering the number of reports of this I've found on the internet I think he was being less than truthful.After reading what others were quoted by Canon to fix the problem I guess I'll figure out how to live with it. Not very happy with the quality of a pair of binoculars that cost almost $600.
UPDATE: The coating got so bad it was coming off on our hands and clothes so had to do something or throw them away. We used acetone and rags to clean the worst spots and, with a good bit of trouble, removed the coating completely. They even look better now. Under the rubber coating is hard, black, shiny material that forms the body"

I have had a dispute with canon over this same subject with my 12x36mk2.
Although out of warranty they seemed to be implying that they were not aware of any such problems with the coatings. After many emails with some with estimate of £400 to repair or a new replacement pair with 25% discount, I agreed to have them sent back unrepaired. With a kind offer of free return postage from canon. This was last year, I also have a pair of Bushnells that predates the Canons by several years with absolutely no problems just goes to show more expensive isn’t always better. Needless to say my advice is if you want a pair of bins with IS try elsewhere, I also changed my loyalty to Canon and got rid of all my camera gear which was considerable.
I was and am disgusted with Canon.
Kind regards Mike

 

[doug el10x32]

Hi,

Once again the ‘dreaded’ melting binocular situation raises again. I have owned six Canon IS binoculars over the past twelve+ years and have never experienced this problem. My ten+ year old 15x50’s and current 10x30 II’s and 12x36 III’s have been used pretty much every clear night and remain in a pristine condition. If the problem was related to a manufacturing ‘batch’ issue then the incidents would probably be over very quickly. Could this problem be related to a very specific user situation ? Storage environment, sun screens, deodorants, insect repellants, even possible human skin type contact. I just cannot believe that this is a major enough problem with these Canon IS binoculars to consider not owning a pair.

Doug.....

 

[AlanFrench]

My wife's 2001 10x30s are fine. My late 2004 12x36 IIs developed the "sticky" issue late in 2018, mostly on the top. The latter got a lot more use but neither pair was exposed to insect repellent.

I talked to a chemist friend about the problem. He suggested it was either insufficient testing of the formulation or batches that were out of specs. Since some binoculars don't seem to have the problem, I suspect the latter.

It's a shame Canon has not publicly addressed the problem. It certainly does not make for good press, and I know some folks have avoided the IS line because of it. Since I upgraded to a 12x32 in early 2019, mostly for the close focus, I'm hoping the stickiness potential has been addressed and solved. For me the image stabilization is a major advantage, especially now that I'm older, overshadowing a slight concern about the future of the exterior.

Clear skies, Alan

 

[richard866945]

sticky canon

That sounds great. Have you got any pictures of the finished item?

Cheers


Jeff

Sorry Jeff but I did not think to take a photo before sending them back to the owner.
Regards Richard

 

[jeffhosier]

About four years ago, I bought two identical kitchen knives from Marks and Spencer for about £2 each. The handles were made from the same kind of black 'soft grip' rubbery/plasticky stuff as the coating on the Canon IS bins. After a couple of months one handle had gone sticky and melty, and I threw the knife away. The other one, about four years on, in and out of the dishwasher (probably over 1,000 times) is still going strong.

Much the same seems to be happening with the Canon bins (apart from the dishwasher bit). There are plenty of accounts of them lasting for many, many years and plenty of accounts of them becoming useless fairly quickly - barely acceptable in a cheap knife, and certainly not acceptable in an expensive pair of bins. (Even more unacceptable is Canon's refusal to deal properly with what is clearly a very real manufacturing issue.)

Maybe it's just something that happens pretty much at random with that sort of stuff, so that if you buy these bins you're just taking a punt that the covering on yours is from a good batch. Very unsatisfactory, but I felt that it was a risk I was willing to take when I bought my 12 x36 iiis because of the insanely good view through them. Even if I have to throw them away after a few years, the cost would probably be no more than the depreciation that buyers of the new Swarovski NL are going to have to face over the same period.


Jeff

 

[Binastro]

I have an unused Bushmaster 7x50 with compass complete with box as new.
Maybe about ten years old.
Amazingly the compass battery still works, but the compass is 4 degrees off.

Seems to be an Australian company.

The rubber coating is the worst I have seen, a sticky mess that gets everywhere.

None of the Canon IS binoculars that I have have this problem.

But for those that have this problem, then it needs to be corrected.

B.

 

[fazalmajid]

These soft-touch plastics, as opposed to real rubber or silicone, are just an incompletely polymerized coating painted onto hard plastic, and all eventually degrade. The fix is 100% isopropyl alcohol to strip the paint off (acetone may be too aggressive)

 

[Jon555]

Just an FYI, my 10x30 IS are now 22 years old and the outer rubber-ish coating is still fine, although the focusing knob got sticky and I needed to get a replacement from Canon... Maybe environmental issues (hot/wet) are to blame as mine have an easy life???

 

[DuckNorris]

My guess is that the problem is most likely caused by cumulative exposure to sunlight.

I had a similar problem with the rubber armor-like soft-touch plastic on the door armrests in my car. The front ones got sticky and the back ones didn't. My windows are tinted, and the front ones get a lot more sun through the un-tinted windshield than do the back ones which are more shielded by the tint.

 

[Petkatz]

Just an FYI, my 10x30 IS are now 22 years old and the outer rubber-ish coating is still fine, although the focusing knob got sticky and I needed to get a replacement from Canon... Maybe environmental issues (hot/wet) are to blame as mine have an easy life???

I have the identical issue with my 10x30 IS binos. They are also 22 years old now and the focusing knob has just become sticky, though the main body is still perfect. Did you fit the focusing knob yourself or did you have to return the binos to Canon for them to do it? Thanks.

 

[Jon555]

I have the identical issue with my 10x30 IS binos. They are also 22 years old now and the focusing knob has just become sticky, though the main body is still perfect. Did you fit the focusing knob yourself or did you have to return the binos to Canon for them to do it? Thanks.

I checked and it wasn't direct from Canon but a supplier they recommended to me. I bought the knob in December 2018, at a cost of £14 delivered, from H. Lehmann Ltd (I'm in the U.K.). I fitted it myself. I don't remember how it went, but I think I would have if it had been a pain.

I'll cross my fingers that they still have stock if you're in the U.K. (the flag under your name suggests you may not be, but London's full of people from Aus and NZ so who knows)...

Good luck!

 

[Petkatz]

Thank you for your response and suggestions. I will try to source one here in NZ (unlikely). Failing that, I will contact H Lehmann in the UK to see what they can do. Thank you once again, your help is much appreciated.

 

[Jon555]

I finally found the e-mails I exchanged with them (I have had too many e-mail accounts over the years)...

They ( [email protected] ) said (see attached image, which also shows how the knob is attached by a screw under a stick-on piece):
"Hi please see attachment if its No 35 YA7-0645-000 focus knob £14.00 incl vat and postage to order email/phone 01782 413611 with payment details 8.30-16.00 mon-fri many thanks."
Me: "Thank you, that’s great - #35 looks like it, can I check how much it costs if I add #36 too (if case it gets damaged)."
Reply: "No 36 is no longer available, to order No 35 email/PayPal/phone 01782 413611 with payment details 8.30-16.00 mon-fri many thanks Paul."

Replace the 0 in the phone number with 44 to call internationally... or just use e-mail and buy some Zeiss binos with the savings

Oh and yes, I didn't damage #36...

 

[MarkVinall]

Had a couple of the 10x30 IS pass through the workshop recently where the outer covering has gone horribly sticky. The black came off on hands and clothes. Talcum powder did not help so I used the stuff that removes the sticky glue left behind when you peel off a label. It did not damage the body and finished up with a nice shiny body. I then cut various shapes from a sheet of thin leatherette and covered the important parts where your hands / fingers go on the body and around the eyepieces. Not technical although a little time consuming and it made the binoculars useable again.

Is it from people using Deet? I lost the rubber off my camera lent grip after using Deet.

 

[Hermann]

Is it from people using Deet?

Apparently not. This seems to happen after 8-10 years in quite a few 10x30s (and 12x36s) no matter how you treat them.

Hermann

 

[Jon555]

Apparently not. This seems to happen after 8-10 years in quite a few 10x30s (and 12x36s) no matter how you treat them.

Hermann

Not always though, mine are now 23 and the only issues were the focusing knob getting sticky after c. 20 years and the glue holding the metal plate in the battery compartment lid giving up at 22 years. (Sub £20 to fix both myself.) The body coating is still as-new.

 

[Hermann]

Not always though, mine are now 23 and the only issues were the focusing knob getting sticky after c. 20 years and the glue holding the metal plate in the battery compartment lid giving up at 22 years. (Sub £20 to fix both myself.) The body coating is still as-new.

Yep, only some seem to be affected.

BTW, your pair is ancient ... How much did you actually use it over the years, and do you have any problems with dust inside? One of the locals here has got an old pair (>10 years with a lot of use) as well, and his pair is pretty dusty inside. Doesn't affect the view though, at least not much.

Hermann